Back in 2006, this was the vision that developers had for "Albemarle Place," which eventually became Stonefield.

Courtesy developers

Stonefield's town center, as it exists today, around mid-day on a recent Thursday in August. More stores will be opening this fall, but it is largely deserted during the day.

Dave McNair

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Back when Stonefield was known as "Albemarle Place," and still
on the drawing board,
developers touted the "town center" development as a place with
"rich architecture, upscale boutiques and eye-catching
entertainment... casual sophistication mixed with unmistakable
class."

There were architectural renderings that showed the newly built,
pedestrian-friendly streets teeming with activity in a lush urban
landscape. Today, courtesy of different developers, the "town
center" is a largely isolated landscape that has the feel of an
abandoned movie set, and with the recent announcement that big box
discount store Costco will be moving in, there's some doubt about
the "unmistakable class" we were originally promised.

Moreover, a Costco is not in line with the spirit of the county's
Places29 Design Plan, which was implemented to guide future
growth along the corridor, and allows a maximum building footprint
of 80,000 square feet. The planned Costco will be 155,000 square
feet. A vote on allowing the square-footage increase, which county
planning staff have already recommended for approval, is expected
to take place at the Board of Supervisor's September 11 meeting
after the Hook goes to press.

The upcoming Tomtoberfest promises a weekend of innovation, music, food and fun, as the Tom Tom Founders Festival founder, Paul Beyer (center), joined UVA innovation bigwigs Philippe Sommer (left), director of the Center for Entrepreneurial Leadership at the Darden School, and David Touve, Director of the Galant Center for Entrepreneurship at UVA's McIntire School of Commerce, to announce the line-up of the fall festival that takes place September 25-28 in downtown Charlottesville and on UVA Grounds. Among other things, the weekend features a candidate forum on Wednesday September 25, a block party with live music, public art and plenty of food, and the humorously named "Lawnie flash seminars" on Saturday, September 28 in which residents of the Lawn speak on contemporary topics from their rooms. Presumably, they will be fully clothed. For a full list of events visit www.tomtomfest.com.

Ivy residents are now a bit safer thanks to the opening of Albemarle's new fire station. At a ribbon cutting ceremony on Thursday, August 29, UVA and county honchos praised the collaboration that made the new station possible and spoke of the benefits, including faster response times to emergencies occurring in the swath of countryside between the city and Crozet, as well as reduced insurance rates for businesses and homeowners in that area as a result of the new station's proximity.

The site of the AT&T cell phone tower in the Key West neighborhood off Route 20 North

The tower will be built on a "critical slope" and will require a zoning waiver.

Courtesy Bob Toplin

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For four years now, concerned residents of the Key West
neighborhood on Route 20 North have been battling telecommunication
giant AT&T over the company's plans to place a 103-foot cell
phone tower in the neighborhood. That battle will come to a head on
September 11, when the proposal comes up for final approval by the
Albemarle County Board of Supervisors.

Armed with research showing that the tower could easily be placed
elsewhere, that it will depress real estate values, harm the
environment, and could potentially cause health problems, Key West
residents hope to nix AT&T's plans.

"AT&T is attempting to improve its profits substantially by
placing the tower in the middle of our neighborhood," says Key West
resident Bob Toplin. "Clearly, the Board of Supervisors ought to
stand up for the county’s citizens in a situation such as
this."

The Key West neighborhood, just a few miles north of
Pantops Shopping Center, is only about six minutes from downtown
Charlottesville, but the community enjoys a kind of peace and
quietude typically found much farther out in the country. Deer roam
the neighborhood in herds, unafraid of being hunted, and long-time
residents there— which until earlier this summer included this
reporter— are protective of that peace.

"We've evaluated a variety of options, and this site will
provide residents of Key West and the surrounding area with the
wireless phone and mobile Internet coverage they...